"This is about justice": March for equality at Oceanfront will shut down 40 blocks of Atlantic Ave.

VIRGINIA BEACH

A group of ministers calling for an end to what it sees as “a culture of discrimination and cronyism in Virginia Beach” is planning a march Saturday that will shut down 40 blocks of Atlantic Avenue at the Oceanfront – the heart of the area’s tourist strip.

The intent of the demonstration, called the Faith, Freedom and Justice March, is to send a message to public officials to examine whether the city awards enough contracts to minorities.

Leaders say the gathering will be historic and the first of its kind since the city merged with Princess Anne County during the Civil Rights Movement.

The idea for a march gained steam after Bruce Smith, a former NFL football player wrote a letter about racial inequality to the mayor last November. He asked the city to do a disparity study to determine if minority-owned businesses have an equal opportunity to do business at the Oceanfront.

James Allen, president of the Virginia Beach Interdenominational Ministers Conference, said the march is being held to remind council members that they serve the general public.

Mayor Will Sessoms said Tuesday during a council workshop that he supports doing a disparity study after several months of rejecting the need for one.

"The perception is we aren't doing enough," he said. "I will accept that and move forward with the study."

That won't stop the ministers from marching.

The Virginia Beach Interdenominational Ministers Conference applied for an event permit on Feb. 10. The application has been approved, and the ministers estimate that a thousand people will attend. The city said it will finalize the permit by the end of the week.

The march will begin at 11 a.m. at Rudee Loop – the city-owned land that Smith wants to develop. It will end at 40th Street at 1 p.m. near The Cavalier Hotel. People can begin arriving at 9:30 a.m. Marchers will walk past at least two dozen hotels along the way.

“I would say it is a historic moment,” said Georgia Allen, past president of the Virginia Beach chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. “I have never seen a march like this.”

Gary McCollum, one of the ministers organizing the event, said people in the community are fed up with a lack of a level playing field for everyone.

He contended that many small businesses led by people of all races are not getting a fair shake at city contracts.

“This is about justice,” he said. “This is standing up to a system that doesn't work in the best interest of all citizens.”

Allen said the African-American community is coming together more than it has in the past. McCollum said that since Smith spoke out, others have asked how they can make their voices heard, too.

“The level of engagement is rising in Virginia Beach and across the country,” he said.

Smith who plans to march, said the movement is bigger than him. The Minority Business Council, Human Rights Council and Virginia Beach Vision have endorsed a disparity study. Jessica Abbott and Ben Davenport were the first council members to say they supported it.

“The disparity study we are asking for is by no means controversial," Smith said in a statement.

Sessoms said Wednesday that he supports the march and would walk with the ministers if he didn't already have plans to go to Florida this weekend. To him, the march is about more than a study – it is about standing up against racism.

Saturday’s march comes with a price.

To close down the street, the city billed the organization $5,470 for 40 police officers, their patrol cars and for staff to deliver and pick up traffic equipment. The ministers paid an additional $250 application fee and are required to carry liability insurance. The fee was originally $8,470, but the city waived $3,000.

McCollum called the fees "exorbitant."

"That's the price of free speech in Virginia Beach," he said.

In 2014, The Pilot reported that the city began imposing a price to provide city resources for major events.

A fee may be waived if the applicant can prove he or she is not financially able to pay, city code says. For Saturday’s march, the ministers chose to pay, said Teresa Diaz, a spokeswoman for the city’s Convention & Visitor’s Bureau.

Virginia Beach spokeswoman Julie Hill said the city calculated how much police coverage it typically needs at intersections for parades along the 40 blocks. She said the city is also factoring in that the event will be held when hotel guests are checking out and during lunch. She said the final number of officers could change.

In Norfolk, city spokeswoman Lori Crouch said city code requires an organizer to pay a $10 permit application fee for activities protected by the First Amendment. The city also has a separate permit application for First Amendment demonstrations.

Two political demonstrations were organized on Jan. 21 for the Women's March in that city. Police directed traffic and allowed marchers to walk in the street, but the roads weren’t completely closed down, Crouch said.

Crouch said events such as marathons, cancer walks or festivals must pay fees and are required to carry insurance. She said those events are treated differently than First Amendment expressive activities.

Charlie Schmidt, public policy council for the ACLU of Virginia, said it isn’t uncommon for cities to charge fees for First Amendment-related permits, but the ACLU doesn’t support it.

“ACLU’s stance is you should not be charged to exercise free speech rights,” he said.

In 2011, the ACLU sued the Richmond Police Department for charging $294 for two off-duty officers to staff a May Day march. The judge ruled in favor of the police, saying localities can charge reasonable fees to cover expenses for a procession.

Schmidt said the ACLU has seen a trend of cities sending more officers than necessary to demonstrations. He said there’s no need to station officers at every block and completely close the streets.

“Why is it going to take 40 officers to do crowd control?” he asked of Virginia Beach’s plan for Saturday. “That seems excessive.”

The Washington, D.C., police department does not charge for First Amendment demonstrations, which happen frequently in the nation's capital. D.C.'s website says the mayor can't impose fees for First Amendment assemblies.

"The National Parks Service doesn't charge fees because political marches are constitutionally guaranteed rights,” said Mike Litterst, a spokesman for the National Mall. “A fee could prohibit someone from being able to exercise their First Amendment rights."